The invention relates to an electric circuit comprising
a printed circuit board,
a component provided on the printed circuit board,
a heat sink secured to the printed circuit board and provided with a wall, which is in thermal contact with the component, and with a lug for pressing the component against the wall of the heat sink.
Such an electric circuit is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,309,979. In the known electric circuit, the cooling plate extends in a direction parallel to the printed circuit board, while the wall is at right angles to the cooling plate and hence also at right angles to the printed circuit board. The lug is provided at right angles to the cooling plate by means of a screw and is also in direct contact with the component. A satisfactory thermal contact between the component and the wall of the heat sink is ensured by means of the lug. As a result of this satisfactory thermal contact, the heat generated by the component during operation of the electric circuit is effectively dissipated. A drawback of the known electric circuit is, however, that the provision of the lug on the heat sink is comparatively complicated and hence expensive.
Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide an electric circuit wherein components forming part of the circuit are effectively cooled, while also the heat sink can be manufactured in a comparatively simple manner.
To achieve this, an electric circuit as mentioned in the opening paragraph is characterized in accordance with the invention in that the lug is formed by moving a part of the heat sink with respect to the remaining part of the heat sink in such a manner that an opening adjoining the lug is formed in the heat sink.
In an electric circuit in accordance with the invention, the lug is formed from the material used for the cooling plate, so that said lug does not have to be manufactured separately. In addition, means for securing the lug to the cooling plate are not necessary. The cooling plate and hence also the electric circuit can thus be manufactured in a simple and inexpensive manner. It has been found that, in an electric circuit in accordance with the invention, the heat generated by the component can be effectively dissipated. It has also been found that the construction of an electric circuit in accordance with the invention is barely sensitive to tolerances.
It proved comparatively simple to bring about good thermal contact between the wall and the component if said wall extends at right angles to the printed circuit board.
Good results have also been achieved using embodiments of an electric circuit in accordance with the invention, wherein the heat sink also comprises a flat cooling plate, which extends parallel to the printed circuit board. In these embodiments, the lug can be satisfactorily positioned with respect to the component in a comparatively simple manner if the opening adjoining the lug is at least partly situated in the flat cooling plate.
The lug in an electric circuit in accordance with the invention preferably extends from an edge of an opening formed in the heat sink, and presses the component against a wall portion extending from another edge of the opening. The lug and wall portion form a U-shaped structure. It proved comparatively simple to manufacture such a U-shaped structure by bending at least one part of the heat sink to be L-shaped with respect to a remaining part of said heat sink.
In an electric circuit in accordance with the invention, the lug may be in direct contact with the component. It is alternatively possible, however, to arrange a wedge between the component and the lug. Such a wedge may consist, for example, of a body made from a synthetic resin. If use is made of such a wedge, then the positioning of the lug is very insensitive to tolerances.
Preferably, the heat sink of an electric circuit in accordance with the invention is formed from a metal, preferably aluminum.
In many cases, an electric circuit in accordance with the invention comprises a number of components which, during operation, generate a comparatively large amount of heat. In that case, the electric circuit preferably comprises an equally large number of lugs, each component being in thermal contact with the wall of the heat sink, and each component being pressed against the wall of the heat sink by a lug, and each lug being formed by moving a part of the heat sink with respect to the remaining part of the heat sink in such a manner that an opening is formed in the heat sink, which opening adjoins the lug and the surface area of which is equal to that of the lug.
Electronic ballasts for energizing a lamp generally comprise a number of components which, during operation of the ballast, generate comparatively much heat. Therefore, the invention can very suitably be used in such electronic ballasts.
These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiment(s) described hereinafter.